第一週•週四

w01d04-ch

晨興餧養

出二三30『我要漸漸的將他們從你面前攆出去，直等你繁衍加多，承受那地爲業。』

西三5『所以要治死你們在地上的肢體，就是淫亂、污穢、邪情、惡慾和貪婪，貪婪就是拜偶像。』

按照出埃及二十三章二十三至二十四節、三十二至三十三節，有人攔阻我們據有那地。這些攔阻我們的人，就是佔據美地的各個異族，他們表徵我們天然生命不同的方面。譬如，其中有一族是迦南人。『迦南』這辭的意思是商人。在我們天然生命裏，有個迦南族，渴望賺錢。其他各族象徵天然人的私慾和天然生命的貪婪。…在我們的天然生命裏，有許多攔阻我們的因素，會阻撓我們得着包羅萬有的基督。

二十四節指明，這些異族都有偶像：『他們的神像，你不可跪拜，不可事奉，也不可效法他們所作的。』不僅如此，三十二至三十三節說，『不可和他們並他們的神立約。他們不可住在你的地上，恐怕他們使你得罪我；你若事奉他們的神，這必成爲你的網羅。』異族的神乃是偶像，而偶像與鬼魔有關。每個偶像背後都有鬼魔。偶像及其背後的鬼魔，代表屬靈的勢力。（弗六12。）（出埃及記生命讀經，一○一三至一○一四頁。）

信息選讀

在我們天然生命的背後乃是屬靈的勢力。…我們天然生命裏有個邪惡的脾氣，是我們所鄙視的。但是，在這邪惡的脾氣背後，有屬靈的勢力，就是鬼魔。…我們基督徒都有這經歷，就連我們不想發脾氣時也會發脾氣。有個東西，就是有一種勢力，使我們不由自主的發脾氣。這指明，我們天然生命的各方面都被背後屬靈的勢力所利用、操縱並指使。天然生命的各方面及其背後屬靈的勢力，阻撓我們享受包羅萬有之基督的豐富。

出埃及二十三章二十二節說，『你若實在聽從祂〔耶和華的使者〕的話，照着我一切所說的去行，我就向你的仇敵作仇敵，向你的對頭作對頭。』在此我們看見，以色列百姓若聽從耶和華的使者，耶和華必將異族剪除。〔參23。〕…祂要將異族從祂的百姓面前攆出去。

二十九至三十節說，『我不在一年之內將他們從你面前攆出去，免得地變荒涼，田野的獸多起來害你。我要漸漸的將他們從你面前攆出去，直等你繁衍加多，承受那地爲業。』在此我們看見，神不是一次就將異族全部剪除。以色列人的數目比較起來還不算多。倘若神在一年之內剪除各族，許多地會變荒涼，田野的獸會多起來爲害百姓。這話指明，我們這些基督徒不應當盼望一夜之間就完全屬靈。

我們聽了論到天然生命的信息之後，也許會渴慕一次就將天然的生命全部剪除。然而，這樣作就會成爲真空，有被鬼魔佔據的危險。就一面說，我們在一段時間之內，仍然需要有天然的生命。我們越在主裏長大，主就越剪除天然的生命。只要以色列人的人數還不彀多，就有需要讓異族存留，使那地不受野獸侵擾。但是，當神的百姓人數加多，主會照着祂百姓人數增加的程度，剪除各族。這表徵當我們在基督裏長大，我們天然的生命要照着我們在生命裏長大的程度，漸漸被剪除。神不是一次就將異族全部剪除，乃是按照我們的長大，『漸漸的』將他們剪除。（出埃及記生命讀經，一○一四至一○一六頁。）

參讀：出埃及記生命讀經，第十二、七十三篇；聖經的核仁，第三篇。

WEEK 1 — DAY 4

Morning Nourishment

Exo. 23:30 Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have become fruitful and inherit the land.

Col. 3:5 Put to death therefore your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and greediness, which is idolatry.

According to Exodus 23:23-24, 32-33, there are frustraters which keep us from possessing the land. These frustraters, the various pagan tribes occupying the land, signify different aspects of our natural life. For example, one of the tribes was the Canaanites. The word Canaan means “merchant.” In our natural life there is a Canaanite, one who aspires to make money. Other tribes signify the lust of the natural man and the greed of the natural life… In our natural life there are many frustraters which hinder us from taking possession of the all-inclusive Christ.

These pagan tribes had idols: “You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them…” [v. 24]. Furthermore, verses 32 and 33 say, “You shall make no covenant with them or with their gods. They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me; for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.” The gods of the pagan tribes were idols, and idols are related to demons. Behind every idol there is a demon. The idols with the demons behind them represent spiritual forces (Eph. 6:12). (Life-study of Exodus, pp. 869-870)

Today’s Reading

Behind our natural life are spiritual forces…Within our natural life there is an evil temper, which we despise. But behind this evil temper there are spiritual forces, demons…As Christians, we have experienced losing our temper even when we did not want to do so. There was something, some kind of force, which caused us to lose our temper involuntarily. This indicates that the aspects of our natural life are utilized, manipulated, and directed by spiritual forces behind the scene. The aspects of the natural life with the spiritual forces behind them frustrate us from the enjoyment of the riches of the all-inclusive Christ.

Exodus 23:22 says, “But if you will indeed listen to His voice and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.” Here we see that if the children of Israel obeyed the Angel of Jehovah, Jehovah would cut off the pagan tribes [v. 23]. He would drive out the pagan tribes from before His people.

Verses 29 and 30 say, “I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the animals of the field multiply against you. Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have become fruitful and inherit the land.” Here we see that God would not cut off the pagan tribes all at once. Israel was still comparatively small in number. If God were to cut off all the tribes within one year, much of the land would be desolate, and the beasts would multiply against the people. This indicates that as Christians we should not expect to become fully spiritual overnight.

After hearing messages on the natural life, we may desire to cut off the natural life all at once. However, to do this is to become vacant and be in danger of being taken over by demons. There is a sense in which we still need our natural life for a period of time. Then the more we grow in the Lord, the more He will cut off the natural life. As long as the number of the children of Israel was rather small, there was the need for the pagan tribes to remain so that the land might be kept from the beasts. But as God’s people increased, the Lord would cut off the tribes according to the degree of the numerical increase of His people. This signifies that as we grow in Christ, our natural life will be cut off gradually, according to the degree of our growth in life. God will not cut off the pagan tribes once for all, but He will do it “little by little” according to our growth. (Life-study of Exodus, pp. 870-871)

Further Reading: Life-study of Exodus, msgs. 12, 73; CWWL, 1977, vol. 1, “The Kernel of the Bible,” ch. 3